It’s been a wild set of days for Saudi Arabia and Lebanon. A Saudi crown prince, cracking down. Purging princes right and left. Seizing cash. Locking up billionaires. Lebanon’s prime minister, telling his country from Saudi Arabia that he’s resigning. That he fears for his safety. Looking like a hostage. Then coming on TV to say maybe he won’t resign. Missiles, flying. Hezbollah, Iran, Saudis circling. Jared Kushner in town. This hour, On Point: A purge of princes, and what is going on in the Middle East. --Tom Ashbrook

Guests:

Bernard Haykel, professor of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University.

From Tom's Reading List:

The Washington Institute:Saudi Arabia's War On Lebanon — "On November 6, Saudi Arabia's minister of Gulf affairs, Thamer al-Sabhan, announced that the Lebanese government, which is dominated by Hezbollah, the Iran-backed political party and militia, would be treated as if it had "declar[ed] war" on Riyadh."

The Washington Post: Saudi Arabia Is Creating A Total Mess In Lebanon — "As if we Arabs need another crisis in our shattered world — but that’s exactly what’s coming after the mysterious resignation of Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri from Riyadh last Saturday and declarations from the Saudi royal court that Iran has officially crossed a red line."